World journal of surgery
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Injuries result in 5.8 million global fatalities annually and are the leading cause of death in younger individuals. Nevertheless, population-based autopsy investigations on traumatic deaths are scarce. We set out to study all consecutive autopsies on traumatic fatalities performed in a 5-year time segment in Estonia. ⋯ The current population-based investigation documented brain injury as the predominant cause of death followed by cardiac and aortic injuries. High incidence of positive BAL among injury fatalities requires national initiatives for alcohol harm reduction and law enforcement efforts.